view from the back

carolina wren (photo, i think, by dave patton)

springtime stumbles

into summer

songbirds mumble

'we're done, we're done'

thru the haze and smoke

nobody gets the joke.

     ecologically, insects are the straw that stirs the drink.......at least in terrestrial systems (marine systems are different)........and in order for the straws to appear, they themselves must be stirred by moisture -- precipitation............after a 3-month dry spell, it began to rain around here in south-central louisiana maybe 10 days ago.......presently, we've got insects lagore.

     from the back porch/deck i've watched 'em appear........and have watched their predators appear. tiny mosquitoes (probably from the genus Culisetta) made their debut this past week......they bite hard.....and they're quick as flies...........happily, near-emaciated anole lizards & skinks (both broad-head and southeastern five-lined) have found them..................they're also hunted by at least two species of dragonflies brave enough to hunt the deck........one's a big blue one (a blue dasher, i think it's called) that makes regular rounds, quickly circling the inside of the deck like a helicopter........and then there's that common green one (carolina pond-hawk, i think), which more timidly hangs out around the edges of the deck.

     4 species of wasps are now on the scene: red paper, mud-dauber, and two species of potter wasp, one "regular wasp size," and the other very tiny -- about the size of a deer-fly.........those potter wasps are awesome.........they make a little clay pot, a finely crafted thing that looks exactly like a wheel-thrown pot, replete with short neck and perfectly-fashioned funnel-shaped opening....all no more than 2/3" in size.......they secrete these larva houses in quiet, shaded spots -- beneath the deck rail is a popular choice..........

     we've also got lots of bumble bees (primary pollinator of our louisiana irises) working whatever's blooming around the deck (currently, elderberry, swamp cyrilla, oriental buttonbush, and double-blush althea) and of course the dag-nabbed carpenter bees, which are slowly turning our exterior rafters into swiss-cheese........sadly, i haven't noted any overt predation on these bad boys......on the adults, anyway......after careful observation, however, i'm guessing that one or both of the potter wasps might be entering the tunnels of the carpenter bees and working over their larvae..............................one can only hope..............otherwise, i personally war with them via a titanium badmitton racquet..........dickie landry says he uses a tennis racquet.........i guess sax players have stronger arms.................

     a primary source of interest is the 'king of the deck,' a big ol' green anole lizard......for years now, there's been a 'king of the deck' to rule over us each warm season...............oh yes, there are other anoles around; but only one king.............it's his deck.........being no idiot, he does allow a female or two around the perimeter -- if they stay out of his way................he does a lot of parading.....stopping frequently to do his throat thingy.........and he really likes mounting the rain guage, crawling up as high as he can, and flexing this cartilaginous throat-rod up there. over the years, i guess there has actually been a succession of 'kings of the deck'...........i'm not sure how long anole lizards live; probably not more than a coupla years................

     i'll finish this post with a recent post from my friend trond nilson..........he's from norway.........he comes to louisiana pretty regularly during the winter months to check out the birds...........but he's in all his glory during norway summers: songbirds lagore, plus, dusk comes at 11:30pm, dawn at about 2:30am! anyway, here's trond:

Didn`t get to bed until 2.30 am last night, when it began to turn light outside again (feel asleep during Brazils match against North Korea in the soccer championship earlier in the evening - it was that boring...) and got to see an owl family (Eurasian Tawny Owl - Strix aluco) - mother with five chicks - flying around my house, perching on the tv antenna, chimney and my pine and sweet cherry trees, the young ones squeeking for food - first time expierience so up close, I felt blessed by that commotion. They`re probably from a holow old beech tree in our nearby beech forrest - owls been nesting there for ages, uses old hols from the big black woodpecker, probably the only woodpecker that`s able to drill in that hard wood...Anyway - I fell asleep with the squeeking in my ears and the dawn outside my - lovely...!




take care bro